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Ask Dr. Gourmet

Does olive oil lose its health benefits when it is heated?

Is it true that olive oil lose its health benefits when it is used
to saute? I read somewhere that it does.

Dr. Gourmet Says...

I have read this many times before and there have been people who have
written to me about the topic. They have, in fact, been quite adamant
that heating olive oil is very bad and unhealthy. The claims range from the
heat producing everything from carcinogens contained in the smoke created
by heating, to conversion to trans-fats.

Fortunately, the science doesn't support these claims. A group whose report was published
in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry heated olive oil to 350°F for
36 hours. (2007 Nov 14;55(23):9646-54) There were
some minor changes in the oil but they found very little oxidation and the
smaller antioxidant chemicals were preserved intact. Their conclusion?

"From these results, we can conclude that despite the heating conditions,
VOO maintained most of its minor compounds and, therefore, most of
its nutritional properties."